


He does look a little like Captain America

by RedRaidingHood



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-11
Updated: 2014-06-21
Packaged: 2018-02-04 06:48:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,361
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1769584
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RedRaidingHood/pseuds/RedRaidingHood
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Hazel and Nico are stranded in the middle of nowhere on a little road trip and an attractive stranger comes to the rescue.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

Nico kicked the tire and stuffed his hands in his cozy aviator jacket. Hazel hung over the engine of her car, apparently banging everything with her screwdriver like it would make a difference. Nico had no illusions about either of their abilities to repair a car. And he wasn’t sure one could even call the sorry excuse of metal on wheels Hazel bought from her small salary at the coffee shop a car. They were totally stranded in the middle of nowhere; the only things that separated them from the horizon where fields of barley and a bunch of creepy cows.

Hazel cursed and threw the screwdriver to the ground where it rolled to the side of the street. The closest cow eyed it hungrily. At least Nico thought it did. You can’t really be sure with cows.

“This is hopeless!”

“Told you," he answered dryly. He got an angry glare from his sister and shrugged.

“You’re really no help here, Nico. Honestly, could you at least take a look at the engine?”

“I don’t even know what part of the stuff in there _is_ the engine, Hazel.” He took out his phone and held it over his head for the fifth time already. Still no reception. “I could walk back a little. I think I still had reception earlier.”

Hazel blew a stray strand of curly, caramel-coloured hair out of her face and crossed her arms. She seemed to contemplate his suggestion when they first heard the sound of another engine coming closer. Both looked at each other with wide eyes. “Can you hear that too?”

“Can’t be wishful thinking, can it?”

They turned in the direction they came from. The sound got louder and by now they could make out a small, black dot in the distance coming closer. The siblings shared a smile. Hopefully the person would know more about cars then them (which was highly possible. It was quite easy knowing more about cars then both of them combined.)

After a few minutes they could clearly make out a biker coming their way and Hazel started waving enthusiastically. They were obviously lucky since the biker stopped and killed the engine next to them. Hazel smiled broadly and went to meet the person while Nico opted to stay in the background a little. He wasn’t really a people-person.

The biker took of his helmet and revealed himself to be a handsome, blond man with a small scar on his lip. He looked really attractive, Nico decided. And then the man smiled at Hazel and Nico wished _he_ had gone to meet their rescuer. Fuck.

“Hey, what’s up?”

“Our car broke down and we know nothing about that stuff,” Hazel explained. “Could you help us? Please?”

His blue eyes seemed to sparkle when he laughed and it didn’t help Nico's increasing predicament.

“Sure thing. I don’t know that much myself, but I can still try.” The man dismounted his bike and followed Hazel to the car’s bonnet. She told him how the engine was no longer working, the sputtering sound they’d gotten when they tried to start it every time and how she had even tried the magic method of banging things to make them work. He listened and laughed and looked really good in leather. Nico huffed and put a hand over his eyes. He was so not ogling a stranger he just met and would never see again. This was not happening.

Hazel stepped beside him and shoved him lightly with her hips. “He does have a nice ass,” she whispered so only Nico could hear. Obviously, his sister had noticed his staring. The man took of his jacket and revealed muscles working beneath a shirt that could easily make him a candidate for the lead role in every superhero movie ever. “Are you kidding?” Nico hissed back “He looks like Captain America”

Nico cursed himself internally when the biker turned. “Sorry, did you say something?” He still smiled. This was unfair. Hazel laughed and walked back to the car. “Oh, he just said you look like Captain America.”

Oh fuckfuck _fuck_.

Blue eyes met his for the first time and Nico was sure he resembled a tomato at the moment. His heartbeat sped up and he wanted nothing more than for the earth to open up and swallow him whole. He would never hurt Hazel and he loved her but… he really didn’t want the man to know that he was going nuts over someone he had just met. That would be creepy. Nico didn’t want him to think he was creepy, he wanted him to think he was cool and interesting and -

\- “Well, thank you.”

_What._

“You’re quite good looking yourself. Name’s Jason by the way.”

_**What.** _

The man – no, _Jason -_ stepped towards him and held out his hand. Dumbly, Nico stared at the offered limb; long, strong fingers with slightly rough skin that seemed accustomed to manual work – or sports. Maybe football. Or basketball, lacrosse? Jason definitely worked out.

“Nico!” Hazel snorted. Nico startled and gasped, realizing he had been holding his breath and staring at Jason’s hand the whole time. Fuck. He didn’t dare to look up but he reluctantly lifted his own hand. Jason took the initiative and shook it laughing. “Nice to meet you, _Nico_.” He turned back to Hazel not yet letting go of Nico. “I don’t know what’s wrong with your car, but I got a friend who owns a garage in the next city. Give me twenty minutes and I’ll get him to come here and fix everything.” He let go of Nico’s hand like he had forgotten a handshake wasn’t meant to last that long. Was he imagining it or did Jason look slightly miffed? He looked at Nico like he was searching for something and finally smiled when Nico met his eyes again. It felt somehow electrifying and all he wanted was for it to be socially acceptable to just stare in those blue eyes for longer then, well, an hour?

Jason went back to Hazel, where he had discarded his jacket next to their car and searched his pockets for something. Hazel thanked him for his help and for informing his friend. She seemed unperturbed at their strange display just now, but when Jason was occupied with his jacket she looked back at her brother and smiled knowingly. He was sure she was about to give him a thumbs-up but Jason already zipped up his jacket and walked up to Nico again. Something was a little odd then. He looked reluctant and his ears were a little red and then he met Nico’s eyes again and just pressed something in his hand. Nico’s heart seemed to stop; this time he was sure he wasn’t breathing. “Call me, ok?”

Jason turned sharply and walked back to his bike a bit stiff. He put on his helmet under Hazel’s laughter and Nico’s dumbstruck gaze.

“I’ll see to that!” Hazel called and waved and with one wistful look at Nico, Jason drove off.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Nico wants to call Jason, but it just isn’t that easy, is it? Thank Gods for Hazel and her stubbornness.

The motel room smelled a little mouldy and the windows let in a small draft, but all in all it was pretty decent. Nico had slept in worse circumstances and it wasn't like they had money to spare. This trip was heavy on their wallets already but it was worth every minute. The time with Hazel, her voice, her smiles, they just made Nico so happy and soon he wouldn't be able to see her for quite some time.

She would always laugh when they checked into a motel, a single room for both of them, and the employees would look at them so _knowingly_ – but they didn't know; they always thought of them as a runaway-couple instead of siblings. The fact had embarrassed Hazel at first, but now she was laughing and mocking them every time, and as of today she was teasing her brother too; wouldn't _he_ like to run away with a certain leather-clad someone? Touring the roads on a bike, his arms wrapped around their superhero from earlier, that had come to send them his mechanic-friend and taken Nico's heart in return?  But it wasn't like _that_. He didn't even _know_ Jason.

Still, he sat on the bed, clutching the little piece of paper Jason had written his number on and stared at it intently. Should he even call him on the same day? Shouldn't he wait a little, not to seem too eager? But then again, what if Jason would've forgotten about him by tomorrow? Maybe he didn't even mean it like that when he gave Nico his number, maybe he'd just wanted to make sure they'd get their car repaired and they should've called to assure him that they were on the road again

– What was he even thinking? They _were_ on the road again; on a road trip, with his sister, miles away from home, to spend their few last days together and not to get Nico a _date_!

But just calling him wouldn't count as trying to get a date, would it? And he could always say he'd just wanted to thank Jason for helping them...

With shaking hands, Nico pushed the first few buttons on his phone, knowing the number almost by heart already, when Hazel suddenly came out of the bath grinning. “What are you doing there?”

Caught red-handed, Nico startled and shoved his phone under the pillow as fast as he could. “Nothing!”

Hazel dried her curly hair with a towel and rolled her eyes. “Yeah, right. Wanna call him?”

Nico knew she meant to encourage him; she had been eager too, when Jason gave him his number, but still, Nico felt guilty to want to call a man he just met so badly, instead of wanting to spend time with his beloved sister. Nico smiled at her and pulled his legs on the bed. “No, right now, all I want is to watch stupid Motel-TV with the sweetest girl I know,” he said, patting the covers beside him, motioning her to sit down.

Hazel gave her hair one last, hard rub and threw the towel over a chair before walking to her brother, slumping onto the worn-out mattress. “So I'm the sweetest girl, but who's the sweetest guy you know, huh?”

Nico leaned back and groped for the remote, switching the TV on. He licked his lips before looking at his sister from the corner of his eyes. “Wanna talk about Frank?”

Hazel blushed hard, nearly slapping her hands on her face, gave a nondescript squeal and buried her head in his shoulder. “You can't just turn this around, Nico!”

He grinned and wrapped his arm around her. “Oh, sure I can. Have you seen his chest? I have and damn, does he work out?”

When Hazel eventually fell asleep, Nico took out his phone again. He softly put a hand over Hazel's eyes, not wanting to wake the sleeping girl nuzzling his shoulder when the screen lit up, illuminating the small room eerily. Jason's number was still on display, each digit burned into Nico's memory. With practised motions, he saved it in his phonebook, where Jason's name was listed right under Hazel's. Nico put the device on the nightstand and exhaled deliberately, closing his eyes and trying not to think of the small scar that adorned Jason's lips. For both of their sakes.

 

When Hazel came back from the gas station on the next day, Nico sat in the drivers seat of the newly repaired car and fumbled with his phone, trying to put it away inconspicuously. Instead of addressing his suspicious behaviour though, she answered with throwing a small box in his lap, grinning like a fallen angel. “I got you porn.”

“What the...?” Nico stuttered appalled. His innocent baby sister did _not_ buy him gay porn. She did not buy him any kind of porn or had anything to do with porn at all. Hazel was his beautiful sibling who blushed when anyone even mentioned sex and was unable to talk about Frank Zhang's hands without becoming a giggling, timid mess – and who did comment on Jason's fine ass though...

Nico raised a skeptic eyebrow and took the box in his hand, looking at its cover and cringed. Hazel, his lovely, dear sister had bought him the Captain America DVD and was trying not to laugh out loud in the passenger seat.

It was all he could do not to bash his head on the steering wheel repeatedly. He just groaned, putting a hand over his eyes and held out the box for her to take back.

“So not funny,” he hissed between gritted teeth.

“I think it is.”

“You think children are funny! - They're _not._ They're annoying and snotty and really sore losers!”

“You should have at least given them a chance!”

Nico turned to his sister dead serious. “Mythomagic isn't a game, Hazel.”

She laughed hard, having to hold her stomach and bending over in her seat and Nico smiled contently. He turned the car key and drove off the parking lot, back onto the road they were taking to San Francisco.

They drove a while in silence with Nico cursing other drivers and Hazel humming lowly to the music on the radio. It was only a question of time though before Hazel leaned against her window with her arms crossed, studying her brother intently. She always tried her hardest to understand her brother, always tried to help him, to let him have the happiness he denied himself, but he sure was stubborn. It was a trait he had inherited from his father - the very same father Hazel had her own pertinacity from, though. “Will you do me a favour?”

Nico glanced towards her for a moment, taking his eyes back to the traffic again. “Anything,” he answered gullible.

“Call him this evening.”

He nearly crashed the car. They were just lucky the driver behind them had good reflexes, swearing and cursing them while driving past their car. Nico pulled himself together, biting his lip and glancing back and forth between Hazel and the windshield incredulous.

Hazel watched him softly. “I just want you to be happy, Nico. And this guy really seemed nice. He could be the one to make you happy, you know? At least give it a chance, okay?”

 

The motel they were staying at was pretty shabby. Nico didn't want to think about the mouse he'd probably killed when he had tossed one of their old blankets over the bed and then thrown himself on it, the mattress actually touching the floor, resulting in a nauseating crush and a panicked squeak.

He sighed and pulled out his cheap MP3 player, flicked to the file with his Disney-soundtracks and watched Hazel fuss about, grinning. By now, she had already carried a toad out of their bathroom, relocated a spider-family from the windowsill to let in fresh air and had thus realized that the whole window only barely hung on one of its hinges. Eventually, she stood beside him, her arms on her hips and shook her head.

“Thanks for helping, brother dearest.”

Nico took off his headphones and smiled. “No problem”

“I'm heading out, buying some food and drinks and stuff.”

“'Aight,” Nico groaned and sat up “Let's get out of this shithole then.”

Hazel obviously had other plans for him though. She put a hand on his shoulder and kept him from standing up. “Nico no”, she chided, then grabbed his jacket from where he had thrown it over a chair, took out his phone and handed it to her brother. “Call him.”

A few minutes later Nico cradled the device in his hands, idly staring at the door Hazel had left through. It felt strange, he didn't really want to call Jason, but he wanted to hear his voice again. Nico hadn't thought it possible, but he still remembered the few words Jason uttered, he could still feel Jason's hand in his and more than anything, he remembered those details he normally forgot about another person pretty soon. Jason's eyes were blue and his hand calloused, and he looked really good in leather. But for all Nico knew he could be some kind of pervert or mass-murderer with really nice, strong arms that could easily hold you down when... yeah.

Nico reprimanded himself, crossing his legs and biting his lips. Jason's name stood out from the others in his phonebook, right between Hazel and Percy, looking good, looking as if it belonged there, belonged to someone who was meant to be in Nico's life and not just like the name of a stranger he'd met yesterday.

Nico's hands were sweaty and he wiped them on his pants, trying to built up the courage call Jason. Taking one last, deep breath, he finally pressed the button and put the device to his ear; his heart beating so fast against his chest it was probably audible everywhere in this dirty room. Nico heard the first ring, Jason's phone alarming him of a call by now. A shiver ran down Nico's spine. What if Jason really had forgotten about everything already? What if it was a bad time, if he disturbed Jason? Oh god, he had really only talked to Hazel, what if he actually wanted her to call? Shit, what if Jason had realized he'd given his number to an unattractive, skinny looser that a cool guy like Jason would never want to be seen with?

Panicked, Nico ended the call. He couldn't do it. He just couldn't. And he didn't have to. Jason probably didn't even hear his phone and even if he did, there was no way he'd call back an unknown number – or so Nico thought. He was wrong though; he stared at the device in his hands horrified. Jason's name lit up on its screen.

_Fuck_.

What to do? He couldn't answer that call! Where was Hazel? She should take the call and tell Jason he was sick, was away, _died_ for all Nico cared, but she was out and his phone vibrated in his hands, Jason's name blinking. Would he believe Nico couldn't hear his phone right after calling Jason himself? Probably not... 

_**Fuck** _ .

“Hey”

“Oh, hey! I thought you wouldn't call anymore.”

Jason. Jason's voice. He laughed a little; it was adorable. Nico really hoped his own voice didn't sound as pathetic as he felt. “How do you know it's me?”

Nico heard Jason breath deliberate on the other end “I remember your voice.”

God, that was so embarrassing! How could Jason remember that? He'd only been stuttering and humiliating himself, of course Jason wouldn't forget something so _funny_. Shit... He had to play it cool, had to pretend not to be Nico di Angelo just for a few minutes. Nico gulped and balled his hand in the cloth of his shirt. “Hey um... wanna meet up?” Holy shhhhhhh... how old was he? _Thirteen_?

The response was so fast, Nico needed a few seconds to comprehend the eager tone “Yes! - Err, I mean yes - yes, I would like that.” Jason chuckled a little and Nico smiled unintentionally.

“We're not from here though, we're on a trip, staying at a shabby motel now, you know?” he rambled, not quite sure what he was doing, what he was getting into. “Is that a problem?”

“Not at all! You can come to my place”

Nico went stiff. He actually didn't know Jason, did he? Going to the place of a perfectly, good-looking stranger, in a part of the country he didn't really know either,  _alone_ . That sounded everything but a good idea... He really wanted to though. Nico opened his mouth to answer, but apparently Jason had taken Nico's silence the wrong way, trying to mend his mistake “Or just a coffee! There's a nice little coffee-shop in that town you were stranded close to!”

This time, Nico felt the smile on his lips, the relief in his chest. He hadn't really wanted Jason to feel bad or anything, but the man obviously was nice, caring enough for the wellbeing of a stranger like Nico to consider the implications of a short span of silence on the phone.

Maybe Hazel was right. Maybe Jason was a good man; good for Nico.

“Yes, I would like that.”

“Right, I – I'll text you the address later?”

“Alright”

“Okay, um … Nico?”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you – for actually calling, you know?”

Nico blushed, covering his eyes with his free hand and pulling his legs to his chest. “Go to bed, Jason.”

The other laughed again and Jason's laugh was contagious since Nico was laughing too, shoving a strand of hair behind his ear.

“Yeah, that'd probably the best, before I embarrass myself any further”, Jason said sounding a little like a child on Christmas “See you tomorrow?”

“Yes”, Nico breathed into his phone, trying to ignore the butterflies bubbling in his stomach, pulling his legs a little tighter to him.

“Good night, Nico”

“Good night, Jason”

Nico ended the call, throwing himself on the bed grinning like an idiot. He really did it, he was so happy. He talked to Jason again, he was even going to talk to Jason tomorrow _again_ and if he didn't fuck this up, he was going to talk to Jason a lot more. 

There was no way he was not going to dream of the man tonight though, and from the way Jason had talked to him on the phone... that was probably even alright.

Nico was really looking forward to tomorrow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, I think there will be a third chapter. Since this is pretty much just a transition with lots of sibling-love, I think I kind of owe Jason a third chapter, don't I? And Nico owes him a date.
> 
> Thanks for reading!  
> As always: Feel free to comment and/or criticize <3


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally the long-awaited date. But first things first: Is it inappropriate to wear leather to a date?

Nico buried his face in the stinky pillow and bit back a scream. There was no way he'd find _anything_ to wear to this stupid date – he'd packed for a road trip with his _sister_ , not a date with Captain America. - Not that many of his clothes were still clean; most of his stuff really needed a wash by now and he'd meet Jason in two hours. Two short hours to miraculously find decent clothes. He didn't even _own_ decent clothes, he'd never thought he would _need_ decent clothes or would worry about clothes he could wear to a date. What does one even wear on a date?

Shit, he was nervous.

Hazel, sitting on her bed and laughing, wasn't really helping things. “Honestly, Nico, I can lend you some of my stuff.”

“Yeah right,” he turned to face her and hissed. “I'd like that frilly, blue babydoll and your hotpants, please.”

“While I do think that you might be able to pull that off, I was thinking more along the lines of that dark-blue sweater-”

“That's Frank's!” Nico slapped a hand over his eyes. “I can't wear Frank's clothes to a date. That's ridiculous, Hazel.”

“Hey! Don't say that. Frank looks great in that sweater.”

Peeking between his fingers, he watched his sister turn her head to the dirt-stained ceiling grinning, obviously thinking of the other boy. Nico rolled his eyes but couldn't stop himself from smiling either, in spite of his own predicament. “But I'd look like a child.” He sat up, pulling his knees to his chest and hugging his legs. “I always thought only girls would have that problem...”

Hazel jumped from her bed and strode to Nico's bag on the floor. “Well, you were wrong,” she said, rummaging through his clothes, sniffing some of them and throwing them across the floor while making a face. “God, boys,” she complained and turned back to Nico. “How come you don't wash these clothes? Or at least put them in a plastic bag, separate them from your clean ones?”

“As far as I know, you haven't washed your clothes for like, oh, the same amount of time I did?”

“I'm not going on a date in two hours.”

Nico stuck out his tongue and rolled his eyes. He stood up, walked to the dirty bathroom and closed the door behind him. He knew it wasn't her fault, Hazel had nothing to do with how fucked up his life was, nor what a loser he was. The boy staring at him through the cracked mirror was definitely not attractive, and no amount of good clothes would change that.

He leaned on the sink and sighed. “Shit.”

His chest constricted, his breathing laboured and his hands gripping the sink hard. Nico felt miserable. There was no denying it, it had been too good to be true. Something great like Jason didn't happen to Nico di Angelo.

He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. Jason had just asked him to get a coffee, not to juggle a chainsaw or to marry him. Plus he would never see him again afterwards. What did he have to lose? Nico laughed dryly. He really had nothing to lose; nothing to win either, so there really was no need to worry about this date at all. Great things didn't happen to Nico, but when the worst thing was a stranger being disgusted at him, then Nico had survived worse already.

He nodded at the boy in the mirror encouragingly. He could do this.

 

\- Or he could just leave. Jup, he'd leave in a few. Jason hadn't arrived on time and Nico was already on his second latte macchiato. He wasn't disappointed, not really. And actually Jason wasn't late that much. Five minutes was nothing, was it?

Nico turned the glass in his hands nervously. Maybe he just wasn't at the right coffee-shop, maybe Jason was already waiting for him somewhere else, thinking Nico had ditched him. Sighing, he uncrossed his legs, trying to relax. He was overthinking again, there was no need to be this nervous; he didn't even really know Jason. There was a possibility they just wouldn't be compatible and wouldn't find anything to talk about, then they would just call this whole thing off and Nico could keep living his life of romance-less-ness.

“Hey, sorry to keep you waiting!” Jason looked incredibly relieved and Nico choked on his latte. “Woah, you alright?”

When Nico finally stopped coughing, he glared at the man who settled down on the chair opposite him. He looked great. Of course he would, Jason could probably wear a plastic bag and look handsome. Nico ignored the nervous smile on his lips and just nodded, absentmindedly wiping his sweaty hands on his pants – Hazel's pants actually; they were a little snug, but at least they were clean.

Jason laughed. “Yeah, um... Hi?” It was pretty cute how he looked at Nico, his shoulders slumped a little, his hands in his lap, apologetically watching his reaction through his lashes. Nico could barely suppress a goofy smile and instead averted his eyes.

“Hi.”

“So, I take it Leo had your car repaired?”

Nico blinked. Leo... Who was Leo again? He rubbed the rim of his glass and liked his lips. Leo... Leo... Eventually he shook his head. “Nope, no way, who is this Leo-person again?”

Jason laughed. He actually laughed and Nico's stomach did a somersault. “Leo is the guy I asked to repair your car. He said he sent you one of his mechanics?”

“Oh, um, yeah, I guess he did,” Nico answered eloquently. He crossed his arms on the table and risked a peek at the man sitting with him. He wasn't wearing leather this time, but he had put his helmet on the chair beside him, so he was here with his bike. Nico wouldn't have minded Jason wearing leather. Was it inappropriate to wear leather to a date?

Jason looked around the coffee-shop. Fuck, was he bored already? Nico gulped, trying to swallow the cold lump in his throat. The silence was almost palpable. Jason turned back and bit his lip before speaking. “Mind if I get myself a coffee?”

“Oh, no, go ahead.”

Jason stood up and went to stand in line. Internally screaming, Nico bumped his head on the table. He kept his forehead on the cold surface and grabbed the hem of his shirt firmly.

_Smooth, really smooth, Di Angelo._

Nico took a breath; his hands were shaking and his heart was beating and he didn't really get enough air. He stayed like this for a few moments, hoping the earth would just open up and swallow him. A warm hand settled on his back, rubbing gently and from the corner of his eye, he saw Jason sit down in the chair next to him. Nico pulled himself back from the surface, straightening up. “You okay?” Jason asked concerned. It was really pathetic how happy that little bit of compassion made Nico. He laughed hollowly and fumbled with his glass again, trying to ignore the hand that was massaging his shoulder and felt really, really good there.

“I'm just... really nervous, you know?”

Jason beamed. “Yeah, me too.”

“What?” Impossible. Jason was so cool, he'd seemed quite confident all the time - on the phone too. Nico eyed him doubtfully.

“Yeah, really,” Jason said. “I mean, come on, what are the chances of meeting a cute stranger and that stranger agrees to actually go on a date with you?”

Nico blushed heavily. How could Jason just say such things? A _date_. This was a date, a _potentially romantic_ date. Nico had never been on a date.

“I'm sorry, I'm rambling.” Jason retracted his hand, bit his lip again and looked away. He took a sip from his coffee. With a small trace of disbelief, Nico noted the faint red hue adorning his cheeks; Jason wasn't lying, he was just as nervous. Trying to hide his affectionate smile, Nico turned to his own beverage.

“You're not a mechanic yourself, I take it?”

Glad to have something to talk about, Jason latched onto the question. “No, gods no! I like my bike and sure, sometimes I get Leo to show me some stuff, but I don't really have the time.” It looked like he wanted to say more, but Nico didn't pry. Jason leaned closer though, one arm laying on the table, the other resting on the back of Nico's chair. “So what about you? What are you doing here?”

“Road trip.” Obviously Jason knew that already, and Nico nearly bit his tongue trying to add something more suitable of an answer. “Hazel's going to marry next month and... she's going to move in with her fiancé.” He sighed. It really wasn't a happy topic, he was missing his sister already...

Jason smiled warmly. “So you wanted to have her for yourself just one more time?”

“We're not doing that! She's my _sister_!” Nico almost screamed appalled– and blushed the moment he got the actual meaning of Jason's question. His eyes darted around the room, looking anywhere but the attractive man next to him, who was chuckling. His voice was gorgeous. “I-I mean, yeah, well, it's been just the two of us for years...” Gods, he felt so lame.

Blue eyes watched him intently. It felt strange, a little too intimate actually, and Nico hunched up. Why was Jason looking at him like that? Did he come to the conclusion this wasn't worth his time?

The hand that had lain on the back of Nico's chair was now slowly hovering to his cheek, cupping his face softly and pulling his chin forward just a little. Nico's mouth went dry. His heart was beating fast and his brain was no longer able to produce anything but error-messages. Strong, calloused fingers caressed his cheekbone, making his eyelids flutter and his lips part slightly. Oh, holy... this wasn't happening, was it? This had to be some kind of dream – but no, Jason's own face was close, flushed red and... the hand let go, leaving Nico's face red and warm.

“Sorry.” Jason turned away, covering his mouth with the hand that had just been so close.

Nico released a breath he hadn't known he was holding, his fingers tracing the skin where Jason had just touched him. He couldn't answer. All he could think of sounded like he had thrown his face on a keyboard, even in his own head.

Mumbling curses, Jason moved the hand on his face upward, covering his eyes instead of his mouth and propped an arm on the table. “Shit, sorry, I-I'm...” He inhaled sharply, obviously unable to calm down on his own.

Oh. _Wow_.

Nico watched the man berate himself for a minute, before beaming. He tried to suppress the smile, but nothing could stop the giddy feeling bubbling in his chest. Nothing could stop his whole body from getting jittery and tingly and happy. This man was not only really good looking, he was downright _adorable_. And Nico really wanted him in his life. Questioning how he could be so sure already was futile, he just knew he wanted Jason by his side.

Finally, Jason dared to look up again, self-consciously watching Nico. “Did I blow it?” His voice wavered.

Nico shook his head. “Quite the contrary.”

Jason stared. Just a minute or two, the gears clicking in his brain. Then he smiled, grinned even. He pulled out the keys of his motorbike from his jeans and juggled them between his hands habitually. “Wanna go for a spin?”

Nico tilted his head. Did Jason just really ask him, whether he wanted to put his arms on Jason's abs, with only a negligible shirt between his hands and bare skin? Oh, and let's not forget the ass that looked really good in leather. Nico laughed, blushing and hiding his face behind his hands. He was cracking the biggest smile ever. Still he was slightly embarrassed.

He nodded. Did Jason even _need_ to ask?

 

It was already evening, when Nico climbed off the bike with stiff legs and a face-splitting grin.

“This is amazing!” He exclaimed a lot more excited than he'd intended. Obviously the adrenaline in his blood made him a little kid again.

Jason had a smug look on his face and dismounted too. “Glad you feel that way. Maybe we can do that again? Some time?”

“Definitely!” Enthusiastically nodding, Nico noticed the implications. Jason wanted to see him again. They hadn't talked much, they hadn't needed to, because – and that was the really cool part – both of them realized that they had time. This wasn't something short-lived, something purely physical, rather... more. There had been a connection from the first time they had touched, and it wasn't something that would fade just like that.

Jason bit his lip. “Say, where are you from?” Okay, this was an important matter. “You're not from around here, are you?”

He was right. While Jason lived here, had his life and his friends and probably his job or something, Nico was just passing by on a road trip with his sister... They hadn't even planned to stay at the dirty motel today...

Nico grit his teeth. Right. This was too good anyway, there just had to be some kind of catch. “New York City.”

“Heh, lucky.”

_What the...?_

Jason pulled him closer, fingers wrapped around Nico's neck. “West Point. United States Military Academy at West Point.”

Nico blinked. “Wait, what?” It finally dawned on him. “You're a soldier?”

“Officer-in-training.” Jason laughed.

Nico had instinctively held onto Jason's strong arms when he had been grabbed; he moved his hands slowly, tracing taunt muscles under skin. West Point. Well, that explained his great body. The Academy wasn't too far from NYC, was it? Nico smiled, his heart doing a little flip. “Well, isn't that convenient, Captain.”

“I'm not – Oh. _Oh_!” Getting the Captain America reference from their first meeting, Jason hugged Nico just a little closer, his arm sneaking around a slim waist, his hand moving to tangle in dark locks. He looked down, blue eyes serious and warm. “Nico?”

“Yeah?”

“You're beautiful.” Trying to hide his embarrassment, Nico buried his burning face in Jason's chest, groaning and slapping his arms lightly. “I mean it,” Jason said. “I want to see you again. I don't want to let you go.”

Nico wouldn't have thought it possible, to blush even more. His cheeks and ears were so hot it almost hurt and his heart was right there, right in his throat; there was no way he could talk right now. Instead, he clutched at Jason's shoulders, balled his hands in the fabric of his shirt and pulled, just wanting to be closer, even closer.

Jason's heart was beating fast, right next to his cheek. He could feel it, hear it; this was real. Really real and indescribable. Nico moved his head, breathing in Jason's scent, definitely smelling the aftershave on his neck and eventually raising his eyes to look in those sparkling, blue eyes.

Nico leaned up and kissed him; touching his lips to Jason's, softly, applying just a little pressure and broke off. He felt Jason's surprised gasp, the small intake of breath, and smiled, never looking away from those eyes – until Jason moved to return the gesture, and Nico's eyes closed.

Each kiss lingered just a little longer, each soft graze of their lips growing bolder, their hands starting to roam their bodies until Nico was practically clinging to Jason, arms tightly around his broad neck.

Both groaned disappointed when they had to break off to breathe. They panted and grinned and looked at each other so utterly blissful.

“I take it I can keep you?” Jason smiled, evening his breathing.

Nico slapped his shoulder, still winded. “Stop asking unnecessary questions.”

“Great.”

They stayed like that a little, just until 'Call Me Maybe' sounded from Jason's jacket.

“Oh god...”

“That's not your ringtone, is it?” Nico tried not to laugh. _Tried_.

Jason shook his head and smiled at him fondly. “That's probably Leo, asking how the date went.”

“And what are you going to tell him?”

Pulling Nico back against him by the belt loop of his jeans, Jason pecked him on the lips. “I'm gonna tell him” - another small kiss - “That it was fun.” - and another - “And I'm looking forward to the next date already.” He pressed a last, lingering kiss on Nico's lips, more than happy to feel his smile when Nico kissed him back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry there was no car-washing scene ;D - But I sure hope you enjoyed it either way!
> 
> I don't plan to write more of this in the near future; there are several ideas I want to write, so I guess this is the end of "He does look a little like Captain America" for now.
> 
> Thank you for reading it and encouraging me and all those nice comments! I really appreciate it <3


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